| 摘要 |
<p>A shipping container is provided comprising a pallet as the bottom thereof, an inverted identical pallet as the top thereof, and a peripheral sleeve forming loadbearing side walls mating with each pallet via a peripheral sleeve-receiving groove defined by a peripheral rim. The unitary pallet is configured so that a bottom pallet of one container will mate with the inverted top pallet of a lower container, when containers are stacked, in such a way as to prevent shifting between containers. The pallets are also self-nesting for transport or storage when unloaded. The containers will stack even if vertically adjacent mutually inverse pallets are rotated 180.degree. in a horizontal plane with respect to each other. This ability to tolerate a 180.degree. rotation is provided by projecting members and platform members of the pallet feet, oriented so that (i) a 180.degree. rotation of the pallet in the plane of the pallet results in a projecting member/platform member pattern the same as the pattern prior to rotation and (ii) a 180.degree. rotation of the pallet about a center line lying in the plane of the pallet results in a projecting member/platform member pattern which engages the unrotated projecting member/ platform member pattern in mutually abutting relationship. The pallets also have their feet so disposed to permit fourway fork lift entry. An alternative embodiment is provided wherein said pallets are nestable and stackable at 90.degree. intervals of relative rotation.</p> |
